Teachers Share their Experiences While Living Abroad!

You may have noticed after reading my critically acclaimed and wildly popular Daejeon Citizen blog that I am a passionate sports fan. While soccer is my first and most intense sporting love, I am also known to dabble in other sports, including baseball.

Being an English Teacher in South Korea is amazing. Not only is the job great, but also there are so many things to see and do. What's more is that you can do many amazing things here in Korea, for free. Whether you want to see a festival, go for a hike or simply watch some body painting. South Korea has it all. In Daegu, South Koreas, third largest city, this is certainly the case. Last weekend, I decided to visit the Local Arboretum. The last time we went here it was autumn, so all of the trees were red, gold and yellow, it was amazing. This time, however, it was spring. The sun was out, it was warm & there were flowers everywhere. What makes this even more awesome is that this area used to be landfill, that's right, a landfill. Around seven years ago, Daegu City decided to turn this wasteland into something useful, and wow did they do just that.

When I came to South Korea to teach English for a year, I was really excited. Not only for the food or the culture or the amazing hiking, but also for the theme parks. South Korea has some of Asia's best theme parks, from Lotte world in Seoul to E-world in Daegu, where I live. Little did I realize, however, just how close my apartment and job would be to one of those Theme Parks. E-world is a Theme Park in Daegu, Korea's third largest city. It is open all year round and depending on seasons it is half water park, ski park and theme park. Not only that, but at night it transforms into a light show, with every tree, every statue, every building covered in illuminations. The other English Teachers and I decided to visit E-world last Sunday:

As I mentioned in my previous blog (Sneak Peek into Korea's 3rd Largest City: Daegu), there are many outdoor activities to do, while teaching English in Korea. This blog will look at Hiking. Hiking is very big here in Korea, in fact, it is probably one of the most popular pastimes, dare I say it, it's even more popular than Noribang. One of the reasons why hiking is so big here in Korea, is because of the landscape. In Daegu, where I am living, I am surrounded by mountains. One of my favourites is Apsan Mountain. Apsan, which is a five minute taxi ride away, costs me around €4 or $5 to get to.

My name is John & I have been teaching English in South Korea just over five weeks now. I teach in Wolbae, Daegu. Where is Daegu you ask? Well....This blog will explain all. When I got my contract for Daegu – I thought great, I have my contract I’m ready to go. My second thought was where is Daegu? All I knew was it wasn’t Seoul and it wasn’t Busan.

Living and teaching in Korea has allowed me to adopt a pretty decadent life-style. I've been pampered in traditional Korean bathhouses and spas, I've wined and dined most weekend evenings in Seoul, I've adopted a Korean sense of style and I can find an item that 'I just have to have!' in any store, and I've adventured throughout Korea and flown to Taiwan and Thailand all in the last year. My teaching salary has allowed me to try, see, taste and shop my way through Southeast Asia all while sending money home to the US each month to pay off student loans and other debt.

The Korean jimjilbang is right up there with kimchi and they may in fact both compete for the top spot. They are well-known elements of Korean culture. Jimjilbangs are large public bath houses (mostly gender-segregated) and can be found on almost every street in Korea. Some are more fancy than others, but most have a handful of hot baths, showers, saunas, massage tables, lockers, sleeping areas and social meeting spaces. Jimjilbangs are usually open 24 hours a day and many people visit them to bathe, relax and sleep. Many rooms, including the saunas, have special minerals, woods and stones to create a soothing sanctuary and provide elements of traditional Korean medicine. The Korean jimjilbang is a familiar and calming oasis for all Koreans. Each is a mini spa that caters to your every need. They are more prevalent than Starbucks shops and you can spend a day in one for the cost of a latte and a snack. They sound perfect, right?

After living and teaching English in Korea for 5 months, I feel that I have permission to proudly brag about my city's newest accomplishment. Construction started in the summer of 2007 and Uijeongbu residents curiously watched as huge concrete pillars and roller-coaster-like tracks were built up around the city. The wait was lengthy, but the highly anticipated U-Line went live this month.

I had no problem hopping a plane from Boston to Korea in the middle of February to teach English in Korea. I love New England, but I have never been a fan of winter. I was born to swim and I live for summers at the beach, as short as they may be. As summer made it's way to Korea I admit I was a bit homesick for NH beaches and my favorite summer spot, Martha's Vineyard. I quickly reached out to my friends in Busan from Chungdahm Training and planned a beach weekend. Little did I know, the weekend happened to also be the Busan Sand Festival. Traveling to Busan was simple - I left my apartment early on Saturday morning and made my way into Seoul on the subway and then caught a KTX train to Busan. I was dipping my toes in the water by early afternoon and spent the rest of the day and evening at the beach catching up with friends and swimming as much as possible.